Thursday, August 06, 2009

Jon Stewart is the Most Trusted Newsman


A year ago, the NY Times asked

Is Jon Stewart
the Most Trusted Man in America?


Jon Stewart is definitely great, but even I wouldn't go quite THAT far, even rhetorically. However a recent Time poll showed a result that I can agree with, even though Stephen Colbert might disagree:

"Who is America's
Most Trusted Newscaster?"


(Hint: It's not Katie Couric)

The Daily Show & The Colbert Report are the only shows that I try to watch every night.

I almost never watch the network news, and I'll change the channel if the cable news is airing what I consider to be worthless content.

The world we live in is often absurd & approaching the news from a strictly serious, respectful angle only gives a false sense that the many clowns (<Warning: Clicking here may cause nightmares) in public life are "serious" & should automatically be given respect.

Comedy Central's political comedy lineup is a great because there are plenty of smart, funny people who appreciate an irreverent look at current events. Satire is a sublime form of information that can have a powerful effect on public opinion. Although he tends to play the simple goofball alot, Mr. "Stewart" is in a very unique position to expose, humiliate, & scorn the most powerful people on earth with no real consequences. He's the modern political court jester for the entire country. It's a pretty awesome thing when you think about it....

2 comments:

McCulley said...

Once again Paul, I agree with everything that you say.

lily_spte said...

I don't know who I find more entertaining and informative, Stewart or Colbert. I agree with you in saying that a comical view toward current events is pretty awesome indeed. It offers viewers a more realistic idea of what is really going on in Washington and the world. If more people watched these programs rather than tuning into Fox, CNN, etc. newscasters who only shove facts (by facts I mean opinions of the networks they work for.. which I'm sure are not even true half of the time) down your throat, more Americans would be able to wrap their minds around what is going on in the political world.